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American Morning
Hunting for Answers at the White House; Saddam Hussein on Strike
Aired February 14, 2006 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.
I'm Miles O'Brien.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Zain Verjee in for Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Hunting for answers at the White House. Why did it take so long to find out that the vice president had shot someone? A live report just ahead.
VERJEE: Saddam Hussein on strike -- back in court, he says he won't eat. Another chaotic day in the Iraqi courtroom. We're live in Baghdad.
The search still on for escaped al Qaeda operatives. New details now on how they got away in the first place.
O'BRIEN: Stuck in the mud -- thousands of temporary homes for Katrina victims may not be going anywhere soon. We'll explain why.
And they're going downhill fast at the Winter Olympics. That's what they like. But what feeds the need for speed? We'll talk live with American speed queen Picabo Street live from Italy in just a moment. Stay with us as AMERICAN MORNING rolls on.
The buzz in Washington today -- how long was too long for the nation to find out that Dick Cheney had accidentally shot someone? It took almost 24 hours and a lot of people would like to know why.
White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux joining us live now from Washington.
What's the word from the White House -- Suzanne?
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, too long for many of us here at the White House. We wanted some answers rather quickly. It took nearly 24 hours to get information that the second most powerful man in the country had shot another individual. An accident, of course, that happened between the vice president and his hunting companion, Harry Whittington.
It was decided by the vice president and the ranch owner at the time that they would disclose the information. But it took nearly a day before it was made public.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN: The initial report that we received was that there had been a hunting accident. We didn't know who all was involved, but a member of his party was involved in that hunting accident. And then additional details continued to come in overnight.
And it's important always to work to make sure you get information out like this as quickly as possible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Well, Miles, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan did not find out that it was actually Cheney who was the shooter until Sunday morning. This happened at 5:30 or so Saturday evening, the shooting taking place.
We understand that the ranch owner, Katharine Armstrong, a good friend of the vice president, had actually said that evening they didn't discuss how they were going to get this information out or even deal with the media. The first thing was attending to the victim, Whittington. And then they said the next morning was when they actually talked about go forward. And that is when she said she'd go to a local paper first and discuss it. And then that's when the vice president's office actually got involved in getting this story out.
O'BRIEN: Well, so, let's get this straight, then. The ranch owner, Ms. Armstrong, led the effort to make this public. That's unusual.
MALVEAUX: Well, that's very unusual. And we should make a distinction here. There's the White House Press Office and there's the vice president's office. Many times, of course, with the president you've got traveling press, you have people who are forthcoming talking about what's happening here.
The vice president's office, a lot of times, you don't know where he is. And if it's not official business, it's not something that they're going to put out there. And in this particular case, we are told that the vice president turned to Mrs. Armstrong and they decided together that this is how they were going to put out the information.
Very unusual -- Miles.
O'BRIEN: Interesting.
Suzanne Malveaux at the White House.
Thank you.
Let's get some headlines in.
Carol Costello, the Saddam trial, on again, off again, now off again.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, you're not kidding.
It is off again.
Good morning to all of you.
There will be another break in the Saddam Hussein trial. Court adjourned again now for two more weeks. Today's hearing a bit more tame, but there was one major bombshell. Saddam Hussein announcing he's on a hunger strike. He also told the judge to take his gavel and knock it on his own head.
We'll get an update from Baghdad for more details just ahead.
Israel is denying a report that the U.S. and Israel are discussing ways to destabilize the newly elected Hamas government. According to sources cited by the "New York Times," the U.S. and Israel are trying to cut off Palestinian funding and its international connections, forcing new elections. A senior Israeli police adviser tells CNN that Israel has discussed the idea of economic sanctions, but the United States was never a part of those discussions.
Neil Entwistle due to arrive in the United States this week. He is the British man accused of killing his wife and baby in Massachusetts. Newly released police documents show Entwistle looked at a Web site that described how to kill people and he also searched for escort services in the days before the killings. Police say there may be a financial motive for the murders.
Georgia -- we're just getting these pictures in. We hear at least three people are hurt after this huge fire broke out in a home in northwest Atlanta. Fire crews are, of course, on the scene. You see the blinking lights there. When we get more information, we'll pass it along to you.
Let's talk about dogs now, though. In New York City, the top dogs are competing for best in show at Westminster. Leading the pack so far, this guy, Rufus, a colored bull terrier that beat out a terrier owned by Bill Cosby. This is a Dalmatian. He's called Boomer. He won the non-sporting group. And if you can believe it, Shaka -- this is Shaka -- Shaka becomes the first Rottweiler ever to win the working group.
The big prize, best in show, will be announced tonight. And, of course, we're going to keep our eye on that one -- Zain.
VERJEE: Thanks, Carol.
Thousands of hurricane Katrina victims are still waiting for somewhere to live. For many, their time in FEMA-funded hotel rooms has run out. Now, they're waiting for mobile homes and travel trailers. But it may be more than just red tape that's keeping those homes far away.
CNN's Gulf Coast correspondent Susan Roesgen takes a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN GULF COAST CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It looks like a mirage -- nearly 11,000 mobile homes neatly lined up and ready to roll. It turns out it is a mirage of sorts. These are mobile homes, but they aren't going anywhere. And the longer they sit, nearly six months already, the less mobile they get.
RICHARD SKINNER, HOMELAND SECURITY INSPECTOR GENERAL: Since they were not properly stored, as you can see from this second picture, the homes are sinking in the mud and their frames are bending from sitting on trailers with no support.
ROESGEN: Department of Homeland Security Inspector General Richard Skinner told the Senate today what FEMA officials in Arkansas already knew -- the soil under the mobile homes is so soft that every time it rains, the mobile homes sink.
Arkansas Congressman Mike Ross is fed up.
REP. MIKE ROSS, (D), ARKANSAS: If you can believe this, they're delivering something like 44,000 jacks to that cow pasture near the Hope airport so they can jack up each corner of all 10,777 manufactured homes.
ROESGEN: Congressman Ross invited CNN to meet him last week at the Hope Municipal Airport, but FEMA refused to let us see the mobile homes for ourselves.
ROSS: Is there any way that they can join us for the tour?
DAVID PASSEY, FEMA SPOKESMAN: We're not allowed -- we haven't allowed any public onto the site because it is a secure federal facility.
ROESGEN (on camera): But the congressman has asked CNN to be his guest here today.
PASSEY: Yes, I heard you. Thank you.
So, would you like to (UNINTELLIGIBLE) --
ROESGEN: So you won't allow us on the property?
PASSEY: I'm just -- excuse me one second.
You want to...
ROESGEN (voice over): Bottom line -- no. FEMA rep David Passey wouldn't let us pass the gate and the guards. But later, Passey showed us around inside one mobile home removed from the rest that FEMA uses as an office.
PASSEY: So there's a living area, an eating area.
ROESGEN: It's big and roomy, just the kind of place that an awful lot of evacuees living in tiny hotel rooms would love to have. According to the Department of Homeland Security inspector general, they may never get the chance. Not only did FEMA spend more than $300 million in taxpayer money to buy these mobile homes, not only are they empty and immobile, but because they are sinking, they are falling apart. And now, these 11,000 brand new mobile homes may wind up in the dumpster.
SKINNER: Insofar as many of these homes failed to meet FEMA specification requirements, or FEMA has no qualified prearranged site location to place them, they may have to be disposed of.
ROESGEN: Congressman Mike Ross says that's gross mismanagement.
ROSS: FEMA should have never purchased these homes. It's a failed policy. It's a failed plan. And it's just -- it's just been a total disaster.
ROESGEN: Susan Roesgen, CNN, Hope, Arkansas.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
VERJEE: And tonight, "ANDERSON COOPER 360" will take a closer look at this FEMA mobile home problem and why the government seems to have difficulty spending the hurricane relief money wisely. That's tonight at 10:00 Eastern -- Miles.
O'BRIEN: It's just outrageous seeing those pictures of those homes there, sitting there, when people could put them to good use.
Let's check on the weather now.
Chad Myers at the Weather Center with that.
And we've got some wet weather headed our way, in the sense that the snow is melting, right?
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: The snow will be melting, absolutely.
(WEATHER REPORT)
O'BRIEN: Stalactites.
Good work, Chad.
MYERS: Very good.
O'BRIEN: And, what, the one that goes up is a stalagmite?
MYERS: Mite, I think.
VERJEE: Stalactite, hang on tight.
O'BRIEN: Oh, excellent.
VERJEE: So those are the ones that go up, stalagmites. That's (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...
MYERS: All these years I've been looking for a little mnemonic or whatever...
VERJEE: That's it.
O'BRIEN: ... and you did it.
Thank you.
MYERS: How did -- thanks, man.
VERJEE: Coming up, the search for 23 fugitive Al Qaeda members, including the mastermind of the USS Cole bombing. The U.S. thinks the prison staff in Yemen helped them break out. How is that going to affect America's relationship with that country?
O'BRIEN: Also, the protests over those cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad flare up yet again. This time, the anger is directed at a new target.
VERJEE: And later, that brutal wipeout on the ski slopes in Torino. A U.S. medal favorite is down, but is she out? We're going to ask her friend and mentor, former gold medalist Picabo Street.
That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VERJEE: They are some of the world's most wanted men. We're talking about 23 al Qaeda operatives, 14 -- or 13 of whom are believed to be hard core operatives who tumbled out of a prison in Yemen.
CNN's Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr, was in Yemen just before the escape.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): CNN was recently in Sanaa, the capital of Yemen, to interview Interior Minister Rasheed Al Aleemi about terrorism. He told us that Yemen had successfully dismantled the al Qaeda's network which existed in October 2000 when the USS Cole was attacked here.
(on camera): What we did not know was that just a short distance away, in what was supposed to be a highly secure jail, 23 al Qaeda prisoners were digging an escape tunnel. Just 11 days after our interview, they broke out.
(voice-over): They are some of the world's most wanted, including Jamal Al Badawi, one of the masterminds in the Cole attack.
The tunnel took two months to dig and stretched from the jail's bathroom to a nearby mosque, a distance of 140 feet. According to a senior U.S. official, several escapees had tunnel digging experience in Afghanistan.
The U.S. believes the prisoners had help from inside the prison and the mosque. A number of prison officials have been detained for questioning.
In Yemen, the geography offers a number of escape routes.
PETER BERGEN, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: They've got several choices. One is to go straight up to the northwest into an area not really controlled by the Yemeni government on the Saudi border.
STARR: Bergen says another escape route is east, into the so- called "empty corner." International warships are patrolling south, in the Gulf of Aden, hoping to shut off access to Somalia, a haven for al Qaeda.
There is concern these men -- several have planned attacks in the past -- will again begin plotting.
BERGEN: It's quite worrisome for the United States and its allies. The people who escaped, after all, have attacked the USS Cole already. They've tried to blow up a French oil tanker, you know, and they're not going to suddenly decide to, you know, we'll retire, I think.
STARR: The frightening question now -- what if the men are not re-captured? What new threat could be posed by 23 al Qaeda terrorists on the run?
Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
VERJEE: Joining us now to talk about the potential threat from the escaped Yemeni prisoners is John McLaughlin.
He is the former deputy CIA director, now CNN's national security adviser.
He joins us this morning from Washington.
Thanks so much for being with us.
JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: Good morning, Zain.
VERJEE: Good morning.
How much danger do you think these men pose now?
MCLAUGHLIN: Oh, these men pose a significant danger.
As Barbara pointed out, they include not only one of the Cole bombers, but also someone who was involved in bombing a French oil tanker and there are some reports that one of the people affiliated with the Lackawanna Six, six men who were convicted of aiding al Qaeda from New York State, was also among the escapees.
So they pose a significant threat, particularly to some countries in the region, like Saudi Arabia. Some of these people had been turned over to the Yemenis by the Saudis.
VERJEE: How hard do you think it is going to be to capture them?
Barbara pointed out in her piece, you know, with Peter Bergen, you've got Saudi Arabia there. You have access to Somalia.
How tough is it going to be?
MCLAUGHLIN: Well, it's going to be very tough. now, the Yemenis are about to issue, they say, a significant reward for them. But a lot of this has to do with what kind of country Yemen is. And as Peter pointed out, some of the areas where these people can flee, up in the Mareed (ph) District, for example, are remote tribal areas where the tribes have a long history of harboring foreigners, particularly al Qaeda.
This is a country, in essence, this is the Dodge City of the Persian Gulf. This is a country with a weak central government, porous borders and armed tribal groups. So the government there is constantly engaged in a balancing act, trying to remain in power. It's only been a country, unified, since 1990. It had a civil war in 1994.
So it's going to be tough to capture these guys.
VERJEE: And the government doesn't have control, necessarily, over the tribal areas that you point out, because that's a critical issue, the tribal structures that often operate to protect al Qaeda, because the bonds of tribes are so strong.
MCLAUGHLIN: That's right. And they're up against a border that is very porous and not well patrolled, with Saudi Arabia. Plus, you have a very narrow body of water, which the U.S. Navy and a multinational force is currently patrolling. But it's a body of water over which they could escape to a place like Somalia or Djibouti.
VERJEE: U.S. officials believe that these prisoners had help from the inside, inside the prison and inside the mosque.
MCLAUGHLIN: Yes.
VERJEE: And, you know, there's been a lot of counter-terrorism cooperation since 9/11 between Yemen and the United States.
But with this, to what extent can the U.S. trust Yemen?
MCLAUGHLIN: Well, you know, the relationship -- first, I think it's unassailable that they had to have some sort of cooperation. This operation was probably in the planning for months and the Yemenis now say that they have arrested something like 80 security personnel who they claim may have been involved.
As far as the relationship with Yemen and the trustworthiness, it's been up and down over the years. After Afghanistan and the -- 9/11 and the invasion of Afghanistan, a lot of al Qaeda fled to Yemen. And the United States embarked on close counter-terrorism cooperation with Yemen.
But it's been up and down. An up period between 2002 and 2004, for example. We saw very little terrorist activity in Yemen. But it's starting to pick up again. A lot of assistance has been given to Yemen. Our special forces helped to train their counter-terrorism folks. Our intelligence services have worked closely with them.
But there's a long way to go in a country that is still, as I said, has a weak central government, porous borders, armed tribal groups and, for that matter, armed bazaars everywhere. This is a place where you can buy just about any weapon on the street. And if you looked at the population of Guantanamo at one point, apart from the large contingent of Saudi nationals there, you would find the Yemenis probably in second or third place.
VERJEE: John McLaughlin, CNN's national security adviser.
Thank you so much for being with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
MCLAUGHLIN: Thank you, Zain.
VERJEE: Miles.
O'BRIEN: Coming up on the program, some new targets in the protest over those cartoons of Muhammad. We'll bring you the latest on the Muslim outrage, this time in Pakistan.
Plus, that brutal wipeout -- even still frame, it's kind of hard to watch. That's U.S. medal favorite Lindsey Kildow. After that, does she have a good chance to come back and get a gold medal? We'll talk to her friend and her mentor, former gold medalist -- well, you're always a gold medalist -- Picabo Street, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Well, I guess you could say Dick Cheney is taking it on the chin from the late night talk show hosts.
VERJEE: They've got the vice president in their sights. And, you know, we can joke about this because essentially the man that Cheney accidentally shot in a hunting accident is on the mend. That is good news.
We want you to listen to some of these comments.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "LATE NIGHT WITH DAVID LETTERMAN," COURTESY CBS/WORLDWIDE PANTS)
DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST: We can't get bin Laden, but we nailed a 78-year-old attorney. The guy who got gunned down, this buddy of...
(LAUGHTER)
LETTERMAN: ... he is a Republican lawyer and a big Republican donor. And fortunately the buckshot was deflected by wads of laundered cash. So he's fine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM THE "TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO," COURTESY NBC)
JAY LENO, HOST: I guess the guy is going to be OK.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good.
LENO: But when the ambulance got there, out of force of habit, they put Cheney on the stretcher. He was going, "No! The other guy! The other guy!"
(LAUGHTER)
LENO: But, you know something? I think Cheney's starting to lose it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, yes?
LENO: Yes, yes, yes. You know, after he shot the guy, he screamed: "Anyone else want to call domestic wiretapping illegally? Huh? Come on!"
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART," COURTESY COMEDY CENTRAL)
JON STEWART, HOST: Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally shot a man during a quail hunt at a political supporter's ranch, making 78- year-old Harry Whittington the first person shot by a sitting veep since Alexander Hamilton.
(LAUGHTER)
STEWART: Hamilton...
(LAUGHTER)
STEWART: Alexander Hamilton, of course, was shot in a duel with Aaron Burr over issues of honor, integrity and political maneuvering. Whittington was mistaken for a bird.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM THE "TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO," COURTESY NBC)
LENO: Cheney's defense is that he was aiming at a quail when he shot the guy, which means Cheney now has the worst aim of anyone in the White House since Bill Clinton, apparently.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Yes.
VERJEE: All right, then.
COSTELLO: And the late night talk show hosts not the only ones poking fun at Dick Cheney.
VERJEE: Having a field day.
COSTELLO: Oh my goodness.
O'BRIEN: What they dream of.
COSTELLO: Oh, what they dream of, you're right.
O'BRIEN: Yes.
COSTELLO: Take a look at the tabloids here in New York.
Let's first take a look at the "Daily News." They're calling it "Birdgate." There it is. And I'm going to read you one of the funniest jokes inside.
David Letterman was hot, wasn't he, last night?
O'BRIEN: He was on fire.
COSTELLO: He was on fire.
O'BRIEN: Yes.
COSTELLO: Inside the "Daily News" is this quip from "The David Letterman Show": "Good news, ladies and gentlemen. We have finally located weapons of mass destruction. It's Dick Cheney."
Let's go...
O'BRIEN: Budda bah (ph).
COSTELLO: Let's go to the "Washington Post."
As you can see, they have birdshot all over the front of the style section and a picture of Harry Whittington -- oh, no, that's a quail.
O'BRIEN: OK.
COSTELLO: And they're talking about all of these Democrats coming up with campaign slogans in light of this incident. One is "Bush-Quail '06." The other is "The CIA Assured Cheney That Harry Whittington Was Actually A Pheasant."
O'BRIEN: Yes, yes...
COSTELLO: OK, the Democrats aren't so funny.
O'BRIEN: ... yes, that's good. They're working on it.
They're working on it.
COSTELLO: But the funniest is in the "New York Post," I must say, because they portray Dick Cheney as Elmer Fudd holding a gun and they are referring to is as "The Elmer Fudd Incident."
O'BRIEN: Yes?
VERJEE: And they do a nice little rendition of that there, right?
COSTELLO: Yes.
Yes, the first line of their story says: "The White House took heavy flak yesterday for waiting a vewy (ph), vewy long time before revealing that wascully (ph) Vice President Dick Cheney had shot a fellow hunter."
VERJEE: I twot (ph) I saw a Democrat.
COSTELLO: I twot I saw. I twot I saw a Democrat.
O'BRIEN: Well, that's not Elmer, though.
He doesn't do that.
COSTELLO: That's Tweetie.
O'BRIEN: That's Tweetie.
But, yes, the same idea.
VERJEE: Yes, that's what it -- I was going to say, just opening it says: "Taking aim -- the 10 people we'd like to see Dick Cheney go hunting with -- Osama bin Laden, Michael Moore, the entire nation of France." Paris Hilton is on the list.
COSTELLO: I know.
VERJEE: There are a few others.
COSTELLO: I'm loving that.
VERJEE: Carol Costello.
COSTELLO: Yes, OK.
Well, there you go, a look at the headlines this morning.
VERJEE: Thank you.
O'BRIEN: Excellent.
VERJEE: Coming up, just what the world needed -- a way to watch just about all the Tim Allen movies you want, right?
O'BRIEN: Oh, boy.
VERJEE: Any time you want them.
O'BRIEN: Yes.
VERJEE: Andy is going to explain...
O'BRIEN: Always tool time, all the time.
VERJEE: ... in "Minding Your Business."
O'BRIEN: And later, our New You checkup. Week six. The Rampolas (ph) were working out and eating right, but then they went on vacation. We all know what happens there. Time for the buffet.
Stay with us for more AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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